Karmapa’s Sister Arrives in Nepal for Monastery Inauguration

The 17th Karmapa’s sister and American citizen Tara Siddhi (Paljom Lama) arrived in Nepal during the first week of Jestha, sources have confirmed. Although speculation had been rife that she was coming to help resolve conflicts and disagreements among Tibetan refugees residing in the Swayambhu and Boudha areas, the actual purpose of her visit has turned out to be different.

She had come to participate in the Rabne (consecration and inauguration) ceremony of the reconstructed building of the Tergar Osel Ling Monastery, located at Halchowk Hill in Nagarjun Municipality. Although the monastery was inaugurated on Sunday, Jestha 17, the prayer rituals are said to continue until Jestha 21. High-ranking Buddhist masters, including Yange Mingyur Rinpoche and Tai Situ Rinpoche, performed religious peace prayers and rituals at the monastery. She had previously come to Nepal on Jestha 6 last year and returned on Asar 13 to attend prayers at the Tara Pechen Monastery.

Meanwhile, Penpa Tshering has been re-elected as the head (Sikyong) of the Tibetan government-in-exile. He took the oath of office for his second term on Jestha 13 in Dharamshala, India, in the presence of the Dalai Lama. The elected members of the 18th Tibetan Parliament took their oath on Sunday, while the Speaker and Deputy Speaker were sworn in on Monday.

The selection of a new representative of the Dalai Lama for Nepal, however, appears set to take some more time. The post has remained vacant since the previous representative, Chhawang Chhokdup Sherpa (Tulku Kalu Nawang), fled to India fearing arrest following the Zhenji movement, after being accused of fabricating fake Nepali citizenship. Karma Gyalzen has been serving in an acting capacity in the interim.

Over 300 Tibetan refugees affiliated with half a dozen monasteries in the Boudha area of Kathmandu had travelled to Dharamshala to submit a petition protesting their exclusion from the electoral process. Hearing the petition filed before the Human Rights Commission in Dharamshala against the Tibetan shadow election commission, the commission had suggested a review of the election process. Subsequently, a special envoy of the Dalai Lama reportedly arrived in Kathmandu in secrecy, conducted a study, and submitted a report stating that the election had been fair, after which the controversy was quietly put to rest.

It is understood that, of late, a Chinese party has been exerting veiled pressure to refrain from publishing news about anti-China and pro-Free Tibet activities taking place within Nepal.